Harambee Stars international, Michael Olunga, says that his mother is yet to travel abroad to visit him as she is yet to muster the courage to board a plane.
The striker, who plays for Al Duhail in Qatar, explained that his mother was sceptical about him plying his trade abroad and the fear stemmed from Olunga leaving for Sweden.
"She is yet to visit me here because she is afraid of boarding a plane but I hope she will come soon. When I was leaving Kenya to go to Sweden, she was concerned as it was the first time I was going to live out of the country.
"I was the first person in the family to live so far away, and the last born too, but we prayed and sought guidance because we didn’t want to regret missing out on certain opportunities."
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Like many African parents, her mother was not supportive of his football career as he had wanted her son to pursue a 'more professional' one.
Nonetheless, football was a hobby for the young Olunga who also embraced studies.
He began to take football seriously when he joined Upperhill High School which has a reputation for nurturing sporting talent in the country.
Olunga was then enrolled in the School of Material Science at the Technical University of Kenya to pursue engineering.
He now had a tough job in convincing her mother to pursue his passion.
Years later, he flew to Sweden where he signed with Sweden's Djugerden FC.
The 28-year-old has since played in China, Japan, Spain, and Qatar where he currently plays for the Doha based Qatar Stars League side Al Duhail.
In the 2021-2022 Qatar Stars League (QSL) he won the Golden Boot after topping the scoring chart with 24 goals.